Tuesday conclave to determine next steps for replacing Akins, Moran, within 60-day limit

By Stephen Floyd, Ashland.news

The Ashland City Council is holding a special meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31, to determine how to fill vacancies left by former Mayor Julie Akins and former Councilor Shaun Moran.

Akins and Moran resigned abruptly Jan. 23 and 24, respectively, and the City Council has 60 days to fill the positions, according to the Ashland City Charter.

The charter allows the council to set its own process for filling the vacancies. Historically they have solicited applications from the public, interviewed a shortlist of applicants and made appointments from within this pool.

Applicants must be eligible to hold elected office within Ashland, but are not required to be current or former officials, including for the office of mayor. 

The council also retains authority to make unilateral appointments and could forgo the application process if there is existing consensus within the council for who should fill the vacancies. If such a consensus exists during Tuesday’s meeting, the council would be allowed to nominate and vote on successors that night.

Tuesday’s meeting will be used to determine which process best suits these circumstances and schedule a timeline for filling vacancies within the required 60 days. Appointees would serve until the positions could be filled by the next general election, scheduled for Nov. 5, 2024.

The meeting will also be used to appoint council liaisons and Budget Committee members, and to elect a council chair for 2023. 

The council chair is a yearly position which leads the council in the absence of the mayor, and this role was not filled at the time Akins resigned. Councilor Tonya Graham, who served as council chair in 2022, will lead the process for selecting a chair at the outset of Tuesday’s meeting, and the evening will proceed under the newly elected chair.

Email Ashland.news reporter Stephen Floyd at [email protected].